Owning your own home

An interesting perspective (and for the comments too)

https://ftalphaville.ft.com/2018/08/17/1534478400000/Eight-questions-every-first-time-buyer-should-ask/

Earlier this summer, Zoopla, the property website, kindly provided a list of eight questions that first-time buyers should ask themselves.

These were practically useful, but lacked breadth. Here’s an alternative list:

• Do you believe it is possible to make huge capital gains on an investment without assuming risk?
  
• Including yourself, which of the counter-parties involved in this transaction do you trust, and why?
  
• Relative to the house location, how far and low is the sea?
  
• To what extent would you describe your aspiration for home ownership as religious?
  
• Will the internet eventually destroy the current distribution of land values?
  
• Will the legal and political institutions that prevent your asset being violently requisitioned survive the next decade?
  
• Is the land in your country worth more than the land in most other countries, and if so, why?
  
• What is a house?